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RIVER  DES  PERES 


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ESTABLISHMENT 

OF 

A  SANITARY  DISTRICT 


13  1S§1 

RECOMMENDED 
BY  THE 


^^ity  Plan  Commission  y^^ 

OF  >ST.  LOUIS  ^     Cokj)  y 


JANUARY  1914 


THE  SANITARY  DISTRICT 

OF  THE 

RIVER  DES  PERES 

REPORT  OF  THE  CITY  PLAN  COMMISSION, 
JANUARY  15,  1914. 

To  the  Honorable  Municipal  Assembly  of  the  City  of  St.  Louts — 

Gentlemen: 

Under  Ordinance  25,745,  approved  March  27,  1911,  it  is  the 
duty  of  the  CITY  PLAN  COMMISSION  to  submit  to  the  Munic- 
ipal Assembly  recommendations  for  the  "control  of  nuisances", 
and  "to  suggest  the  state  and  municipal  legislation  necessary  to 
carry  out  the  recommendations  of  the  Commission." 

The  Commission  unanimously  recommends  the  passage  of 
the  ordinance,  the  draft  of  which  has  been  approved  and  trans- 
mitted to  the  Municipal  Assembly  by  the  Board  of  Public  Im- 
provements, as  the  first  step  to  be  taken  by  the  City  toward  the 
formation  of  "The  Sanitary  District  of  the  River  des  Peres." 

The  State  Law. 

The  proposed  ordinance  was  drafted  by  the  Law  Depart- 
ment of  the  City  in  conference  with  the  President  of  the  Board 
of  Public  Improvements  and  the  Sewer  Commissioner.  If  it  is 
passed,  and  if  the  County  of  St.  Louis  takes  concurrent  action 
as  provided  in  the  state  law,  the  resident  voters  living  within 
the  watershed  of  the  River  des  Peres  will  be  given  the  privilege 
of  voting  in  November,  1914,  to  create  the  sanitary  district. 

The  proposed  ordinance  is  based  upon  an  act  of  the  Missouri 
Legislature  passed  in  1905, — nine  years  ago.  That  act  was 
framed  to  meet  the  peculiar  conditions  of  the  des  Peres  water- 
shed, embracing  as  it  does  portions  of  St.  Louis  City  and  St. 
Louis  County.  It  is  elaborate  in  its  provisions  and  represents 
much  study  on  the  part  of  the  framers. 


RIVER  DES  PERES   SANITARY  DISTRICT. 


The  Commission  feels  that  the  resident  voters  should  be 
given  the  opportunity  to  express  themselves  next  November,  as 
the  state  law  provides,  and  to  that  end  respectfully  urges  early 
action  on  the  part  of  the  Municipal  Assembly.  The  proposed 
ordinance  will  give  immediate  effect  to  the  first  two  sections  of 
the  law  which  are  Sections  5687  and  5688  of  the  Revised 
Statutes,  reading  as  follows : 

A  Petition  the  First  Step. 

"Section  5687.  Whenever  the  construction  and  maintenance 
of  a  common  outlet  or  channel,  or  of  a  system  of  drains  or 
sewers,  for  the  drainage  of  any  area  in  the  State  of  Missouri, 
shall  become  necessary  to  secure  proper  sanitary  conditions  for 
the  preservation  of  the  public  health,  if  such  area  shall  lie  in 
part  within  and  in  part  without  the  corporate  limits  of  any  city 
having  a  population  of  three  hundred  thousand  or  more,  said  area 
may  be  established  and  incorporated  as  a  sanitary  district  un- 
der this  act,  in  the  manner  following,  to-wit:  The  mayor  and 
assembly  of  the  city,  or  the  county  court  of  the  county,  within 
whose  limits  any  part  of  such  area  may  lie,  or  in  case  the  area 
is  situated  in  part  in  a  city  authorized  to  perform  all  the  functions 
of  a  county,  and  part  in  a  county,  both  the  mayor  and  assembly 
and  the  county  court  may  petition  the  circuit  court  or  courts 
having  jurisdiction  for  the  appointment  of  commissioners  as 
hereinafter  provided,  and  to  take  such  further  action  as  may  be 
necessary  to  the  submission  to  the  legal  voters  resident  in  such 
area,  of  the  question  whether  such  area  shall  be  organized  and 
incorporated  as  a  sanitary  district  under  this  act.  Such  petition 
or  petitions,  which  may  be  in  the  form  of  an  ordinance  of  the 
city  or  order  of  the  county  court,  shall  set  forth  a  description  in 
general  terms  of  the  territory  to  be  embraced  in,  and  suggest 
a  name  for,  the  proposed  sanitary  district." 

The  Preliminary  Survey. 

"Section  5688.  The  circuit  court  or  courts  so  petitioned 
are  hereby  authorized  to  appoint  three  disinterested  persons, 
one  of  whom  shall  be  a  civil  engineer  or  surveyor,  as  commis- 
sioners to  lay  out  and  define  the  boundaries  of  the  proposed 
sanitary  district.  Said  commissioners  may  alter  or  amend  the 
boundaries  of  the  proposed  district,  as  set  forth  in  the  petition 
or  petitions,  so  that  it  may  embrace  all  of  the  area  capable  of 

—  3  — 


REPORT  OF  THE  CITY  PLAN  COMMISSION 

being  efficiently  drained  by  the  common  outlet  or  channel,  or  by 
the  system  of  sewers  or  drains,  or  so  as  to  exclude  from  the 
sanitary  district  any  part  of  the  natural  drainage  area  which  is 
so  situated  as  not  to  be  benefited  by  the  proposed  sanitary  drain- 
age, and  for  this  purpose  they  shall  have  power  to  have  made 
all  surveys  and  maps  necessary  to  locate  and  describe  the  said 
boundaries.  Said  commissioners  shall  qualify  by  taking  oath 
to  faithfully  and  impartially  perform  their  duties,  and  when  so 
qualified  shall  give  notice  by  publication  at  least  five  times,  in 
one  or  more  newspapers  having  a  general  circulation  in  the  pro- 
posed district,  of  the  time  and  place  where  they  will  meet  to  con- 
sider and  establish  said  boundaries.  Said  notice  shall  be  given 
at  least  twenty  days  prior  to  the  meeting,  and  the  meeting  place 
shall  be  in  the  court  house  of  the  county,  or  city  hall  of  the  city. 
At  the  meeting  the  commissioner  first  named  in  the  order  of 
appointment  shall  preside,  and  all  persons  residing  or  owning  real 
property  in  such  proposed  district,  or  adjacent  thereto,  shall 
have  the  right  to  be  heard  as  to  the  location  of  the  boundaries 
of  such  proposed  district;  and  the  commissioners  or  a  majority 
of  them  after  such  hearing  shall  fix  and  determine  the  boundaries 
of  the  proposed  district.  The  commissioners  may  adjourn  from 
day  to  day  until  the  hearing  shall  be  complete,  and  for  their 
services  shall  receive  ten  dollars  per  day  each,  for  each  day  of 
actual  service.  They  may  employ  a  competent  person  as 
stenographer  and  clerk,  whose  compensation  shall  be  five  dollars 
per  day.  The  commissioners  shall  make  their  report,  accom- 
panied by  a  map  or  plan  showing  the  boundaries  of  the  proposed 
district,  in  relation  to  the  property  lines  intersected  or  followed 
by  them,  also  in  relation  to  the  city  or  county  boundaries,  to  the 
court  or  courts  by  which  they  were  appointed.  Said  report  and 
map,  if  approved  by  the  court  or  courts,  shall  then  be  filed  in 
the  office  of  the  recorder  of  deeds  for  the  county  or  counties,  or 
city,  in  which  the  proposed  district  is  situated,  and  copies  of  the 
map  with  the  mayor  of  the  city  and  with  the  county  court  of 
the  respective  county  or  counties." 

To  be  Submitted  in  November. 

"It  shall  then  be  the  duty  of  said  mayor  and  county  court 
or  courts  to  submit  to  the  legal  voters  of  the  proposed  district 
the  question  of  the  organization  and  incoi-poration  of  the  pro- 
posed sanitary  district,  with  boundaries  as  determined  by  the 

—  4  — 


RIVER  DES  PERES  SANITARY  DISTRICT. 


said  commissioners  and  approved  by  the  said  court  or  courts, 
at  an  election  to  be  held  on  the  first  Tuesday  after  the  first 
Monday  in  November  thence  next  ensuing;  notice  whereof  shall 
be  given  as  required  by  the  statutes  of  the  State  of  Missouri 
regarding  the  election  of  county  officers.  Polls  shall  be  opened, 
so  far  as  practicable,  at  or  near  the  usual  polling  places  at  gen- 
eral elections.  Votes  shall  be  received  and  counted  by  three 
persons  at  each  polling  place,  chosen  from  their  number  by  the 
lawfully  qualified  electors  resident  in  the  proposed  district,  not 
less  than  nine  in  number  present  at  any  poll.  The  returns  of 
the  vote,  certified  to  under  oath  by  those  who  receive  and  count 
the  vote,  shall  be  made  to  the  Secretary  of  State  of  the  State 
of  Missouri,  who  shall  ascertain  and  declare  the  result.  Each 
legal  voter  resident  within  such  proposed  sanitary  district  shall 
have  a  right  to  cast  a  ballot  at  such  election,  with  the  words 
thereon :  "For  sanitary  district,"  or  "Against  sanitary  district." 
If  a  majority  of  the  votes  cast  shall  be  "For  sanitary  district," 
such  proposed  district  shall  thenceforth  be  deemed  an  organized 
sanitary  district  under  this  act." 

A  Board  of  Trustees. 

"When  the  board  of  trustees  hereinafter  provided  for  shall 
be  appointed  and  organized,  such  sanitary  district  shall  be  con- 
sidered in  law  and  equity  a  body  corporate  and  politic,  known  by 

the  name  and  style  of  "The  sanitary  district  of ," 

and  by  such  name  and  style  may  sue  and  be  sued,  contract  and 
be  contracted  with,  acquire  and  hold  real  estate  and  personal 
property  necessary  for  corporate  purposes,  and  adopt  a  common 
seal.  All  courts  in  this  state  shall  take  judicial  notice  of  the 
existence  of  all  sanitary  districts  organized  under  this  act.  If 
the  proposition  to  establish  the  sanitary  district  is  carried,  the 
cost  of  all  preliminary  proceedings  shall  be  borne  by  the  district ; 
if  it  is  defeated,  all  costs  of  court,  of  commissioners  and  of  the 
election  shall  be  borne  by  the  city  and  county,  if  of  independent 
jurisdiction — each  being  liable  for  all  expenses  in  regard  to  pro- 
ceedings under  its  petitions.  If  its  jurisdiction  is  single,  the 
county  court  shall  pay  for  all  said  expenses.  When  a  natural 
drainage  area  includes  territory  lying  in  part  in  a  county  and 
in  part  in  a  city  exercising  the  functions  of  a  county,  or  in  two 
or  more  counties,  then  the  proceedings  hereinbefore  prescribed 
shall  state  that  the  proposition  is  to  unite  the  parts  so  situated 


REPORT  OF  THE  CITY  PLAN  COMMISSION 


in  independent  jurisdictions  into  a  single  sanitary  district;  and 
if  the  proposition  is  carried  by  a  majority  vote  in  each  of  the 
parts,  then  the  district  shall  be  united  and  organized  as  described 
in  said  proceedings,  and  the  circuit  court  having  jurisdiction 
over  the  major  part  of  the  area  included  in  the  district  so  or- 
ganized, shall  have  and  is  directed  to  exercise  jurisdiction  in  all 
cases  or  questions  arising  out  of  the  organization  of  the  district, 
or  from  the  acts  of  the  board  of  trustees  thereof." 

The  Sewer  Commissioner's  Investigation. 

According  to  a  preliminary  survey  made  by  the  Sewer  De- 
partment of  the  City  of  St.  Louis,  the  watershed  of  the  River 
des  Peres  comprises  about  67,000  acres,  of  which  approximately 
15,000  are  in  the  City  of  St.  Louis  and  52,000  in  St.  Louis  County. 
According  to  this  official  data  the  watershed  of  the  River  des 
Peres  in  St.  Louis  County  is  divided  practically  into  three  sub- 
divisions : 

Gravois  Creek  empties  into  the  south  side  of  River  des 
Peres  about  Alabama  Avenue;  fourteen  blocks  west  of  the 
Mississippi  River.  Gravois  Creek  drains  the  neighborhoods  and 
communities  of  Luxembourg,  Sappington,  Afton,  part  of  Kirk- 
wood,  Woodlawn  and  Oakland. 

What  is  known  as  the  west  branch  of  the  River  des  Peres 
empties  into  the  main  stem  of  the  River  des  Peres  at  the  suburb 
known  as  Greenwood.  This  branch  of  the  River  des  Peres 
drains  Maplewood,  Greenwood,  Old  Orchard,  Webster  Park, 
Webster  Groves,  Tuxedo,  Dwyer,  Maddenville,  Mentor  and  part 
of  Clayton.  The  west  branch  is  the  route  of  the  Creve  Coeur 
branch  of  the  Missouri  Pacific. 

The  main  stem  of  the  River  des  Peres  enters  the  city  through 
the  corner  of  the  old  Delmar  race  track.  It  drains  University 
City,  Brentmoor,  Wellston,  Olivette,  Central,  Elmwood  Park  and 
Stratman. 

What  the  City  Has  Done. 

The  city  has  already  constructed  a  foul  water  sewer  32,900 
feet  or  about  six  miles  in  length  along  the  lower  section  of  the 
River  des  Peres.  This  foul  water  sewer  begins  at  the  Missis- 
sippi River  at  the  foot  of  Catalan  Street.     In  the  first  section 

—  6  — 


RIVER  DES  PERES  SANITARY  DISTRICT. 


its  dimensions  are  10  by  12  feet.  There  are  half  a  dozen  sec- 
tions of  this  foul  water  sewer.  The  size  of  the  sewer  diminishes 
until  at  Greenwood,  the  junction  of  the  two  branches  of  the 
River  des  Peres,  the  sewer  is  six  feet  in  diameter. 

The  city  has  also  constructed  a  foul  water  sewer  where  the 
main  stem  of  the  River  des  Peres  enters  the  city  limits  in  the 
corner  of  the  old  Delmar  race  track.  This  is  a  comparatively 
small  sewer.  It  follows  the  channel  of  the  River  des  Peres  to  a 
point  in  Forest  Park  opposite  Union  Avenue  entrance  where  the 
foul  water  is  lifted  by  pump  into  the  Pine  Street  sewer.  A  con- 
siderable part  of  this  foul  water  comes  from  St.  Louis  County. 

The  distance  from  the  lower  end  of  the  upper  section  of  the 
River  des  Peres  sewer  in  Forest  Park  to  the  upper  end  of  the 
lower  section  at  the  junction  of  the  River  des  Peres  and  the  west 
branch  is  about  4.3  miles.  The  sewage  flowing  along  this  cen- 
tral portion  of  the  route  both  from  the  city  and  county  is 
entirely  in  the  open. 

The  lower  section  of  the  River  des  Peres  sewer,  from  Green- 
wood to  the  foot  of  Catalan  Street,  cost  about  $900,000. 

The  Problem  of  Storm  Water  Floods. 

In  St.  Louis  County  six  thousand  acres  of  farm  land  were 
sub-divided  into  town  lots  between  1900  and  1910.  These  are 
United  States  census  figures.  Since  1910  the  transition  from 
farm  land  to  town  lots  has  been  much  more  rapid.  Most  of 
these  sub-divisions  are  within  the  des  Peres  watershed. 

Every  acre  of  farm  turned  into  city  lots  not  only  means 
more  sewage,  but  the  streets,  sidewalks,  gutters  and  alleys  mean 
more  rapid  drainage  of  storm  water.  Comparative  experiments 
in  Forest  Park  and  in  city  blocks  show  that  the  volume  of  storm 
water  draining  from  city  blocks  is  twice  as  great  as  that  drain- 
ing from  the  same  area  of  park.  The  growth  of  the  City  of 
St.  Louis  has  overtaxed  in  places  the  sewer  system  because  of 
the  rush  of  storm  water  over  paving.  What  is  true  of  the  city 
generally  is  becoming  more  impressive  yearly  within  the  limits 
of  the  des  Peres  watershed.  Across  the  city  line  a  heavy  rain- 
fall in  St.  Louis  County  means  now  the  overflow  of  the  banks 
of  the  River  des  Peres  within  the  city,  consequent  damage  to 
property  and  litigation  for  the  city.     This  condition  is  becoming 

—  7  — 


REPORT  OF  THE  CITY  PLAN  COMMISSION 

more  aggravated  every  year  as  the  area  of  street,  sidewalk  and 
alley  paving  extends. 

The  sections  of  foul  water  sewer  along  the  River  des  Peres 
are  expedients  to  meet  the  most  pressing  emergency.  The  dis- 
position of  drainage  for  the  entire  watershed  should  be  treated 
as  one  great  problem,  taking  into  full  consideration  the  rapid 
change  from  rural  to  urban  conditions. 

A  Metropolitan  Sewer  System. 

For  the  proposed  action  by  St.  Louis  City  and  St.  Louis 
County  there  is  a  precedent  supplied  by  Boston.  That  city 
twenty-five  years  ago  was  confronted  with  a  like  problem.  It 
was  necessary  to  do  something  about  the  sewage  of  the  com- 
munities lying  beyond  the  boundaries  of  Boston  and  draining 
into  the  Mystic  and  Charles  River  Valleys  lying  partly  within 
the  area  of  Boston.  An  act  of  the  legislature  or  general  court 
of  Massachusetts  created  the  Metropolitan  Sewer  Commission  of 
three  members  and  gave  it  power  "to  construct,  maintain  and 
operate  for  the  cities  of  Boston,  Cambridge,  Somerville,  Maiden, 
Chelsea,  Woburn,  and  the  towns  of  Stoneham,  Melrose,  Win- 
chester, Arlington,  Belmont,  Medford,  Everett  and  Winthrop, 
such  main  sewers  and  other  works  as  shall  be  required  for  a  sys- 
tem of  sewage  disposal  for  said  cities  and  towns." 

This  board  represented  the  State  of  Massachusetts  and  was 
given  general  powers  in  the  matter  of  hamionizing  the  local 
sewer  systems  and  creating  a  general  system  to  cover  the  several 
cities  and  towns  within  the  district.  From  time  to  time  suc- 
cessive acts  of  the  legislature  or  general  court  were  passed  ex- 
tending the  Metropolitan  Sewage  System  as  the  population  in- 
creased. , 

St.  Louis  County's  Marvelous  Development. 

The  progress  of  change  from  rural  to  urban  conditions  in 
St.  Louis  County  is  strikingly  shown  by  official  reports.  Ac- 
cording to  the  Government  census  four  years  ago  the  population 
of  St.  Louis  County  was  82,417.  That  was  an  increase  of  64% 
from  50,400  in  1900.  If  the  rate  has  been  kept  up,  and  the 
probability  is  it  has  increased,  St.  Louis  County  today  has  more 
than  100,000  population. 


RIVER  DES  PERES  SANITARY  DISTRICT. 


It  is  notable  that  the  principal  increase  is  within  the  des 
Peres  watershed.  Central  Township,  which  lies  almost  wholly 
within  the  watershed,  increased  from  18,055  in  1900  to  38,676 
in  1910. 

The  census  of  1900  gave  the  valuation  of  land  per  acre  in 
St.  Louis  County  at  $100.56.  In  1910  this  valuation  had  in- 
creased by  one-half  to  $150.90. 

The  land  valuation  in  St.  Louis  County,  according  to  the 
Government  census  in  1910,  was  $48,173,219.  The  chief  growth 
of  population  in  St.  Louis  County  has  been  recent.  From  1880 
to  1890  the  county  increased  in  population  less  than  5,000 ;  from 
1890  to  1900  the  increase  was  less  than  15,000,  while  from 
1900  to  1910  the  increase  was  over  30,000. 

St.  Louis  County  Cities. 

The  incorporated  communities  of  St.  Louis  County  showed 
the  marvelous  increase  of  396  per  cent  from  1900  to  1910. 
These  cities,  with  but  one  or  two  exceptions,  lie  within  the 
watershed  of  the  River  des  Peres  and  their  sewage  must  be  cared 
for  in  the  des  Peres  Valley. 

The  land  area  of  St.  Louis  County  is  311,680  acres.  More 
than  one-sixth  of  this  area  is  within  the  des  Peres  watershed  and 
must  be  drained  through  the  sewer  system  of  St.  Louis.  Of  the 
area  of  St.  Louis  County  64,572  acres  were  not  classed  by  the 
census  of  1910  as  farm  land ;  that  is  to  say,  four  years  ago  more 
than  one-fifth  of  St.  Louis  County  had  ceased  to  be  farm  land. 

St.  Louis  County  Farms. 

In  respect  to  the  farms  of  St.  Louis  County  the  census  fig- 
ures show  a  notable  change  bearing  directly  upon  this  question 
of  drainage.  The  number  of  farms  increased  largely  within  the 
decade  1900-1910.  There  were  in  the  latter  year  many  more 
small  farms  of  from  five  to  ten  acres  indicating  rapid  sub-di- 
vision of  the  larger  holdings  with  increasing  sewage  to  be  dis- 
posed of.  In  the  consideration  of  the  drainage  problem  small 
farms  are  to  be  considered  as  large  city  lots.  St.  Louis  County 
in  1910  had  37  "farms"  under  three  acres,  429  under  ten  acres, 
583  under  twenty  acres  and  1305  under  fifty  acres. 

The  land  area  of  St.  Louis  County  is  311,680  acres.  Of  this 
247,108  acres  were  farm  land  in  1910,  a  reduction  from  253,065 

—  9  — 


REPORT  OF  THE  CITY  PLAN  COMMISSION 

in  1900.  The  difference  represents  the  transformation  of  acreage 
into  town  property  during  the  decade.  But  according  to  the 
Government  the  classification  of  247,108  acres  of  farm  in  St. 
Louis  County  does  not  mean  that  amount  of  improved  or  tilled 
land.  The  improved  farm  land  in  1910  was  193,181  acres.  The 
farm  land  of  St.  Louis  County  in  1910  embraced  46,941  acres  of 
forest  and  6,986  of  other  uncultivated  land.  The  average  size 
of  the  St.  Louis  County  farm  in  cultivated  land  was  under  fifty 
acres,  or  to  be  exact,  47.7  acres. 

Other  Sections  of  the  State  Law. 

If  the  resident  voters  of  the  des  Peres  watershed  vote  to 
establish  the  Sanitary  District  of  the  River  des  Peres  three 
trustees  will  be  appointed,  one  by  the  County  Court  of  St.  Louis 
County,  one  by  the  Mayor  of  St  Louis  with  the  approval  of  the 
Council  and  one  by  the  Circuit  Court  having  jurisdiction  over 
the  major  part  of  the  territory,  which  would  be  the  Circuit  Court 
of  St.  Louis  County.  The  third  appointee  must  be  "a  civil 
engineer  of  good  repute  in  his  profession  and  a  recognized  ex- 
pert in  matters  of  drainage."  This  appointee  of  the  Circuit 
Court  will  be  president  of  the  board  and  its  executive  officer. 
For  their  services  the  three  trustees  will  be  paid  on  a  per  diem 
basis  fixed  by  the  Circuit  Court  of  St.  Louis  County.  The  meth- 
ods of  procedure  by  the  trustees  are  set  forth  elaborately  in 
thirteen  sections  of  the  state  act.  One  section  provides  for  the 
raising  of  a  special  drainage  tax  within  the  district,  the  amount 
of  which  shall  not  exceed  one-half  of  one  per  cent  on  the  assessed 
and  equalized  valuation  of  such  land  for  that  year.  This  tax 
will  be  collected  by  the  same  officers  and  by  the  same  methods 
as  provided  for  state  and  county  taxes.  The  amounts  collected 
will  be  paid  into  the  treasury  of  the  city  and  county  and  be 
credited  to  a  special  fund. 

Section  5693  makes  it  the  duty  of  the  trustees  to  "conduct 
the  necessary  surveys,  map  out  and  define  the  several  drainage 
areas  in  the  district  and  to  lay  out  a  general  plan  for  the  drainage 
thereof." 

Section  5694  provides  for  the  condemnation  of  private  prop- 
erty, "if  in  the  judgment  of  the  board  of  trustees  it  is  necessary 
to  acquire  rights  of  way  or  easements  for  drainage  purposes, 
through  private  property";  or  said  board  may  obtain  the  same 
by  purchase,  gift  or  otherwise. 

—  10  — 


RIVER  DES  PERES  SANITARY  DISTRICT. 


Local  Sewer  Systems  Encouraged. 

Under  section  5697  the  local  authorities  of  any  city  or  in- 
corporated town  or  village  or  the  county  court  or  individual 
owners  or  associations  of  owners  shall  have  the  right  to  con- 
struct sewers  or  drains  in  the  district  at  their  own  expense,  but 
the  plans  for  such  sewers  and  drains  must  conform  to  the  plans 
adopted  by  the  Board  of  Trustees. 

Under  Section  5699  the  board  of  trustees  or  the  authorities 
of  the  city,  town  or  village,  or  the  county  court  shall  have  the 
power  to  accept  from  private  persons  or  corporations  any  sewers 
or  drains  constructed  by  them  before  or  after  the  organization 
of  the  sanitary  district  and  to  allow  an  equitable  credit  for  any 
such  sewers  or  drains. 

Section  5698  contemplates  the  organization  of  sub-districts 
as  a  part  of  the  sanitary  district,  a  sub-district  not  to  exceed  one 
thousand  acres  in  area.  A  sub-district  may  be  created  on  the 
petition  of  a  majority  of  the  resident  tax-payers  within  the  sub- 
district.  The  cost  of  construction  of  sewers  in  the  sub-district 
shall  be  met  by  special  tax  bills  issued  against  each  lot  or  parcel 
of  ground  drained  or  drainable  by  the  sewer  or  the  portion  of 
such  lot  or  parcel  lying  within  two  hundred  feet  of  the  center 
line  of  such  sewer.  The  special  tax  bills  may  be  paid  in  instal- 
ments if  the  property  owner  so  petitions  and  the  number  of  in- 
stalments shall  not  be  more  than  five. 

St.  Louis  County  Communities  Interested. 

At  the  present  time  one  of  the  communities  of  St.  Louis 
County  has  connected  its  sewer  system  with  the  city  sewer  sys- 
tem. The  sewage  of  this  St.  Louis  County  community  is  carried 
without  cost  to  the  community  through  the  city  sewer  system. 
It  is  pumped  by  the  city  to  a  higher  level  to  carry  it  over  the 
divide  and  discharge  it  into  a  sewer  running  to  the  Mississippi. 
All  this  is  necessary  to  avoid  pollution  of  Forest  Park. 

Two  other  St.  Lous  County  communities  have  within  the 
past  few  weeks  asked  the  Sewer  Commissioner  of  the  city  to 
find  a  way  in  which,  by  the  payment  of  an  agreed  amount,  they 
may  connect  their  sewers  with  the  foul  water  sewer  in  the  lower 
River  des  Peres  Valley. 

—  11  — 


REPORT  OF  THE  CITY  PLAN  COMMISSION 


Still  other  St.  Louis  County  communities  resort  to  septic 
tanks,  or  run  their  sewers  to  sink  holes,  or  empty  their  foul 
water  in  creeks  which  are  branches  of  the  River  des  Peres. 

The  situation  in  general  is  one  which  invites  continuously 
an  epidemic  of  typhoid.  Such  a  visitation  would  depreciate  val- 
ues in  St.  Louis  County  to  an  amount  many  times  beyond  the 
cost  of  establishing  the  sanitary  district,  not  to  speak  of  the 
needless  suffering  and  loss  of  life. 

Respectfully, 

C.  P.  WALBRIDGE,  Chairman. 
J.  H.  GUNDLACH, 
SAM  LAZARUS, 
ANDREW  GAZZOLO,  Jr., 
E.  R.  KINSEY, 
C.  M.  TALBERT, 
DWIGHT  F.  DAVIS 
JAMES  N.  McKELVEY, 
THOS.  P.  BARNETT, 
HUGO  A.  KOEHLER, 
COLIN  M.  SELPH, 
CHAS.  A.  STIX, 
JAMES  C.  TRAVILLA, 
HARRY  B.  WALLACE, 
WALTER  B.  STEVENS, 

Secretary. 
January  15,  1914. 


